1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to pacifiers for children. More particularly, this invention relates to a pacifier having a plurality of perforations and recesses and a curved edge allowing for greater comfort and ease of cleaning.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is well known that infants and toddlers may be comforted if they are given a pacifier. Generally, all pacifiers have a nipple that is placed into the child's mouth, and a shield that remains outside the child's mouth, preventing the child from swallowing or choking on the pacifier. A handle is typically provided to give the child or a supervising person a method of holding the pacifier.
Pacifiers are typically made of multiple components with different materials. Preferably, the pacifier nipple is made of a soft and flexible material such as silicone, latex, rubber, thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) or other synthetic compound. The shield and handle are typically made of a more rigid material, such as nylon, polycarbonate or other suitable thermoplastic. The nipple is attached inside the pacifier shield by fastening in a conventional manner, for instance, by clamping, gluing, etc.
Pacifiers may be made integrally formed, typically of a plastic that is selected to provide the nipple with sufficient flexibility and the shield and handle with adequate rigidity. However, the rigidity required for the shield typically results in the nipple of integrally formed pacifiers being more rigid than desired. Another design, as taught in U.S. Pat. No. 6,695,869, is a pacifier formed by overmolding a more rigid inner substrate (the shield) with a more flexible outer substrate (the nipple).